Reuters has recently published an investigative report titled, “Murder for hire: Inside Iran’s proxy war with Israel in the West” that includes examples of the Iranian regime’s collaboration with professional criminals for assassinations, threats, and abductions of Tehran’s opponents.
According to court documents and government officials, Reuters has found that since 2020, at least 33 assassination or abduction plots have occurred in the West.
Local and Israeli officials have attributed the use of criminals for assassinations in the West to the Iranian government.
One of these plots was an attack on a building in Athens, Greece, where a Jewish center and the Kashrut restaurant were located.
Sayed Fakhar Abbas, a Pakistani national, hired an old acquaintance of his in Greece for this attack.
Abbas promised to pay him €15,000 for each killing.
In April 2022, they discussed using explosives and arson on WhatsApp.
Abbas demanded documented proof to verify the number of casualties to avoid any issues with receiving payment.
Without mentioning any specific group or organization, Abbas asked him to carry out the operation in a way that would satisfy the employer.
Greek police have examined hundreds of pages of documents, messages, and security statements detailing how Sayed Irtaza Haider was recruited by Abbas.
Haider, a Pakistani national, was employed to plan the attack on Athens. Last year, Greek authorities arrested Haider and another Pakistani.
These individuals are facing terrorism charges, but they have pleaded not guilty.
Abbas, the mastermind behind the operation, has been charged with terrorism and is wanted in Pakistan on murder allegations. However, his whereabouts are unknown.
Israeli intelligence service Mossad, which assisted Greece in the investigation, stated that the hiring of criminals for assassinations in the West was orchestrated by the Iranian regime and is part of an international network of terrorists and criminals directed by Iran.
Although the Iranian regime has denied Mossad’s claim, the methods used in previous plots have been similar. Documented evidence shows that Iran has repeatedly used criminals for assassinations in the West.
Reuters has managed to track down two other similar cases that appear to be linked to Pakistani nationals.
The targets of the plots attributed to the Iranian government have included senior U.S. officials, Iranian journalists, and opponents of the Iranian regime abroad.
The campaign of former U.S. President Donald Trump recently announced that U.S. intelligence agencies have received information about assassination threats from the Iranian government against him.
Brett Holmgren, Director of the United States National Counterterrorism Center, has stated that since 2020, the Iranian regime has increased deadly plots by non-Iranian criminals against former U.S. officials, opponents of the Iranian government, Jews, and Israeli targets.
Ali Khamenei, the Iranian regime’s Supreme Leader, has repeatedly called for the destruction of Israel, and many Iranian officials have vowed to kill Western officials as well.
Most of these threats are carried out by non-Iranian criminals to avoid directly implicating Tehran.
The increase in plots attributed to the Iranian government in the West has coincided with escalating tensions between Iran’s regime and Israel.
Last month, a German court sentenced an Iranian-German individual to prison for planning to burn down a synagogue on behalf of the Iranian regime. He had thrown a Molotov cocktail at the synagogue.
In the U.S. as well, since 2020, five cases related to assassination or abduction have been attributed to the Iranian regime.
Recently, a Pakistani man has been accused of collaborating with the Iranian regime to assassinate a U.S. official.
By hiring non-Iranian criminals, the Iranian regime is effectively trying to cover its tracks in these crimes.
